Tag Archives: taiwan tourism

If you haven’t guessed by now, I’m a food lover. I don’t discriminate between high end or street food. If it tastes good, it tastes good. And let me just say…..the food taste really f’in good in Taiwan. Yes, I ate myself silly from morning to night….smiling with every bite, stuffing my lil’ tummy until it was bulging over my jeans. It was totally worth it! I was mostly in a food coma while there, but here’s what I remember as my top food picks of Formosa (aka Taiwan, aka mecca of deliciousness).

Tried & True

Dirt cheap $1 boba (or less!) on every street corner. Had one pretty much every day.

Beef noodle soup- Nothing fancy, just tender beef cooked in a broth with noodles. You can pretty much get this on any street corner or night market. I have so many fond childhood memories of my Mom making this for us on a cold, winter day.

Fried milk- It’s not really want you think it is. It’s really more like fried custard/ pudding ball on a stick. Another night market find.

Pineapple cakes- If you’re looking for souvenirs, look no further. It’s always a crowd favorite and most come in cute individual packages. We snagged a few in the free hotel minibar and then bought a few boxes as presents. Buttery outer layer with pineapple filling on the inside. It’s not oozy like a jelly doughnut filling, but more like a paste.

Drooling yet? Read on to drool more…

Once in a lifetime

Mountain greens- My mom is uber healthy, so I’ve eaten a lot of Taiwanese greens in my life; however, I’d never laid eyes on these greens until this trip. They’re grown in the mountains and have a very distinct curly cue at the end. Typically sautéed with black beans for a tasty side dish. I’m usually not one to rave about veggies, but these ones are unique, cute to look at, and flavorful.

Gakuden Boulangerie in Taipei- I stumbled across this bakery on accident and it was kismet. If I were stranded on a desert island, the one thing I could not live without is bread, carbs, baked goods. What’s even more amazing is that bakeries in Taiwan are typically open late (like think wee hours of the morning). I wish I had photo evidence of these goodies, but I devoured them too quickly. Sorry! You’ll just have to trust me that the chocolate mini soufflé muffin was to die for…that the loaf bread with cubed cheese, cranberries, and nuts had the perfect texture and sweetness. Really, everything we had was amazing.

Din Tai Fung restaurant- If you read any guidebook, than you know that you MUST go to Din Tai Fung. Sure, it’s totally hyped up, but it lives up to its name. It’s known for handmade dumplings and Xiao Long Bao (dumplings that burst out with soup when you bite into ‘em). We had pork chop fried rice, Dan Dan noodles, and a bunch of a dumplings and stuff. YUMMY!

Most interesting and unique

Rice flour wraps stuffed with peanut shavings, cilantro, and ice cream… Interesting combo, right? Sounds weird and gross, but somehow it works really well together. It’s refreshingly sweet and kinda makes you wonder what other combos that you’ve overlooked in life that could be absolutely wonderful together.

Other odds and ends that were interesting, but not really for me: pig knuckles, duck’s blood in hot pot, oyster omelet..and these slimy guys below. I’m adventurous, but something about the looks of these pouches made me want to cringe. Sorry, maybe next time!

After 2 months of winter hibernation, travel, and eating myself silly…I’m back and fat and happy as ever. In case you were wondering where I was, I took a short trip to Taiwan for Thanksgiving, pounded work hard in between, and then took on some R&R in Florida for the holidays. Since it’s been a while since I’ve blogged, I thought I’d start from where I left off…my trip to Taiwan.

It’s been over a decade since I’ve been to Taiwan (my homeland) and boy has it changed….for the better. The streets are cleaner because of the subway, the people are as nice as can be, and the fashion has moved beyond the fobby misspelled English words. Hooray! It could also be that my trip was cheery overall because I was with 2 of my favorite people in the world- my mom and my fiancé. (Yes, I just said cheery. I’ve been watching too many episodes of Downton Abbey, so occasionally I break out in British banter.) My fiancé had never been to Taiwan, so seeing it fresh through the eyes of a virgin tourist made it all the more special. In any event, it was a great mix of decadence and natural beauty. Man bags are way “in” and people have taken a liking to fluffy little dogs and carry them everywhere. On the flip, there are untapped parts of the island that are pristine, mountainous terrains filled with natural beauty and grace. Want more? Then, check out my Top 10 of Taiwan below.

Wendy’s Top 10 of Taiwan

10. Restrooms are EVERYWHERE…

So you don’t have to ever worry about peeing in your pants. Sure, they are squatters, but the good news is that are you building up leg muscle while you squat…a twofer!

9. Cute Mascots

If there’s one thing that the Taiwanese are good at, it’s creating really freakin cute mascots. Look at this fella from the Ding Tai Fung restaurant. Adorbes!

8. Night Markets

You can’t NOT go to a night market if you’re in Taiwan….it’s a staple. However, personally I feel like they’ve gone a bit downhill. I think they’ve started cracking down on fakes, so there aren’t as many knock offs anymore- disappointing! Street food is good, but mostly fried, so get your Tums ready.

7. Free Minibar at the Hotel

In the US, hotels charge you $8 bucks minimum for any drink you consume from the minibar. Not in Taiwan! Every hotel I stayed at had a FREE minibar. Can you believe it? I had pineapple cakes and like a gallon of water at the Hotel Tango in Taipei. Fruit at the Hotel del Lago at Sun Moon Lake. The list goes on and on. Enjoy it while you’re here ‘cause not many other places have it.

6. Jiu Fen

Translated, the name of this town is called “nine portions.” It’s somewhat hard to get to and if you can manage to survive the hours of car-sickening back and forth switchbacks, then it’s worth the trip. The main artery of town is a seemingly never ending staircase, but to the side of the staircase are cute shops and restaurants that you can browse. Great day trip from Taiwan!

5. Chung Tai Chan Monastery

This monastery is modern and breathtaking. You could get lost in here looking at the statues of laughing Buddha, the 4 headed soldiers that are as tall as the building, the decorated Buddhist shrines…It’s in Puli, Nantou Country, in central Taiwan, so if you happen to be near Sun Moon Lake or Taichung, then hop on over.

4. National Palace Museum

This place is epic…like the Louvre of Taiwan…and boasts the largest collection of ancient Chinese artifacts and artwork in the world. Check out the famous jade cabbage if you are lucky enough to go. It’s kind of like the Mona Lisa of the museum. I bought a beer magnet of it as a reminder. 🙂

3. The Natural Beauty

I’ve never really seen the natural beauty of Taiwan until this trip. Let’s just say that my last trip was during my 20’s for the infamous “Love Boat” summer camp, so I saw more of the inside of clubs and bars than anything else. Must see places? Taroko’s Gorge in Hualien and Sun Moon Lake. I’ve heard Alishan is cool, too…but we didn’t make it there because we were short on time. In case you’re wondering what Taroko’s Gorge is, it’s basically a huge passage formed by the river cutting through the mountains (pix below). It’s crazy the number of butterflies that live here and just flitter and float around. I’d recommend the Cave of Waterfall Curtain hike here. There’s a nice surprise at the end, which I won’t ruin for ya. And Sun Moon Lake is a lake in case you didn’t know! 🙂 It was a bummer that the weather was overcasty and rainy, but we had a few good hours where the sun came out and played.

2. Nice People

The people are so freakin nice here and polite. Hospitality is amazing- both family and strangers a like, everybody from our taxi drivers to the people on the streets. There’s no crowding on sidewalks and people respect your personal space, unlike some other places I’ve traveled too. And our relatives there were so hospitable. Every meal was another relative treating us to some amazing food- a local hot spot, the hottest seafood restaurant, you name it! If we said we craved something, they got it for us right away. Thank you family for treating us so well. Yes, it’s expected, but you went above and beyond!

1. The Food

It’s no surprise that the food was the best part about Taiwan. What I love about my people is that they eat throughout the day…my kinda people. They’re always noshing on something. Bakeries are open all day (not just for half the day) and they are by far the best bakeries EVER. You can get an entire Taiwanese breakfast for 4 for the same price as 2 cups of Starbucks coffee. Street food is tasty and cheap. Boba is $1. I could go on and on, but I don’t want to ruin my next blog post, which is my top eats of Taiwan. Stay tuned! In the meantime, drool below.